Runaway is a heart-warming story about a 15 year old girl named Dakota. Dakota is a troubled young lady who does not easily trust due to being in 7 different foster homes. When her social worker takes her to the 8th foster home, Dakota with the help from friend, Niel plan to run away. However, things start to change for Dakota when she gets to her 8th foster home, which is a horse rescue farm. Dakota is crazy about horses and as she cares for a horse that needs her, she comes to realize how different this new foster family is. Has Dakota finally found a place she can call home? Will the horse she cares for survive and learn to trust again? I found this book to be very well-written and it is perfect for young readers who love horses

I've read books from three of Mackall's series, and I think Runaway might be my favorite so far! This book features a 15-year-old girl who is placed with a foster family who lives on a farm in the middle of nowhere. The family takes in kids and animals in need, which makes for some interesting happenings! The mash-up of animals and kids was great. And I loved that the story featured a normal (although sort of odd) family who truly displayed the love of Christ through their actions. Lots of great takeaways in this book. This was the first book in the series, and I would love to keep reading the series to see what happens with the other kids. [4.5 stars]

Wonderful book to help kids understand where they belong and that even though things may go wrong in life there is always light at the end of the tunnel. Its a great story for any child especially those who love animals but also a pleasant read for adults.

My 3rd grade daughters love Dandi Daley Mackall's "Backyard Horses" series and now that their reading level has improved by leaps and bounds, I was eager to preview this series for them. I really enjoyed the book, and I liked the theme. I'm considering using this series as some of our extra 4th grade homeschool reading for the upcoming year. The book is well-written, flows nicely, and has a wide variety of characters and, like I mentioned previously, a theme that will interest my kids. While the main character in this book 16, I believe preteens can also enjoy and relate to the series. I also like the foster theme and really love how the author weaves together the "foster" animals with the foster kids. The story felt real, touching, and heartfelt. This is something my children can relate to--their cousins have foster brothers and sisters and there are numerous foster kids who attend our church. This book would be especially great reading for any foster kids who need a bit of inspiration and encouragement, not to mention good, wholesome entertainment.